Flexible organic waste receptacle

ABSTRACT

A receptacle for waste organic materials, comprising at least one flexible gas and liquid impermeable wall, a flexible gas and liquid impermeable lower surface in gas and liquid impermeable engagement with the at least one flexible gas and liquid impermeable wall wherein the at least one flexible gas and liquid impermeable wall and the flexible gas and liquid impermeable lower surface define an interior of the receptacle adapted to receive and contain the waste organic materials.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a flexible organic waste receptacle,and more particularly, relates to a flexible organic waste receptaclefor temporarily storing organic waste in a freezer or refrigerated area.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Temporarily storing organic waste, such as meat, chicken, vegetables,fruit and other kitchen organic waste is an important part of theprocess of recycling such materials, as it is common that the municipalcollection of these materials may be on a weekly, biweekly or otherregular but relatively infrequent basis, requiring that these wastematerials be stored temporarily until municipal collection day, at whichtime they can be presented in an appropriate format for municipalcollection. Similarly, in those regions where no municipal collectionoccurs, the temporary storage of organic waste until it can beappropriately disposed of or composted may be beneficial.

The temporary storage of organic waste materials can present manydifficulties, as it can generate unpleasant odors, and can attract fruitflies and other insects, and if, for example, stored outdoors, canattract other animal and insect pests.

It is desirable to be able to refrigerate or temporarily freeze theseorganic waste materials, to minimize or eliminate the generation ofunpleasant odors and the attraction of insects and other pests to thestored material. Additionally, it is desirable to provide a flexibleorganic waste receptacle that can be refrigerated or temporarily frozen,while at the same time allowing the receptacle to have flexiblecharacteristics so that the contents of the receptacle can be readilyremoved therefrom without requiring anyone to directly come into contactwith the contents of the receptacle during the emptying process. Bymaking the temporary storage of organic waste materials odorless andconvenient, people will be encouraged to compost and/or recycle organicwaste material, encouraging sustainable environmental practices at thelocal level.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, one object of the present invention is to provide aflexible organic waste receptacle that can be refrigerated ortemporarily frozen, adapted to receive and temporarily store and eitherrefrigerate or temporarily freeze organic waste materials.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a flexible organicwaste receptacle which is lightweight, easy to handle, space efficientand provides for the ready, easy and complete removal of the organicwaste therefrom without requiring that anyone directly come in tocontact with the organic waste during the process of emptying theorganic waste from the receptacle.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a flexible organicwaste receptacle that can be easily cleaned when emptied, and will notbe readily stained from contact with the organic waste.

According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided areceptacle for waste organic materials, comprising, at least oneflexible gas and liquid impermeable wall, a flexible gas and liquidimpermeable lower surface in gas and liquid impermeable engagement withthe at least one flexible gas and liquid impermeable wall wherein the atleast one flexible gas and liquid impermeable wall and the flexible gasand liquid impermeable lower surface define an interior of thereceptacle adapted to receive and contain the waste organic materials.

An advantage of the present invention is that it provides a flexibleorganic waste receptacle that can be refrigerated or temporarily frozen,adapted to receive and temporarily store and either refrigerate ortemporarily freeze organic waste materials.

A further advantage of the present invention is that it provides aflexible organic waste receptacle which is lightweight, easy to handle,space efficient and provides for the ready, easy and complete removal ofthe organic waste therefrom without requiring that anyone directly comein to contact with the organic waste during the process of emptying theorganic waste from the receptacle.

A further advantage of the present invention is that it provides aflexible organic waste receptacle that can be easily cleaned whenemptied, and will not be readily stained from contact with the organicwaste.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A preferred embodiment of the present invention is described below withreference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a receptacle of one embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of one side wall and a portion of thebottom of the receptacle of one embodiment of the present invention inthe upright orientation;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of one side wall and a portion of thebottom of the receptacle of one embodiment of the present invention inthe inverted orientation;

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a side view of one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is an end view of one embodiment of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used hereinhave the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill inthe art to which the invention belongs. Although any methods andmaterials similar or equivalent to those described herein can be used inthe practice or testing of the present invention, the preferred methodsand materials are now described.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, as illustrated inFIGS. 1, 4, 5 and 6, an empty flexible organic waste receptacle 2 isprovided, preferably made of flexible silicone (or other materials knownto a person skilled in the art that are smooth, strong, air-water-tightand flexible when frozen), having, in a preferred embodiment, asillustrated in FIG. 1, a main body with a generally rounded box-likeshape, preferably with side walls 12 and end walls 14 and preferably ofa size so that it can readily be positioned and cleaned in a standardsized kitchen sink or dishwasher, the generally rounded corners 4 makingit easy to remove the contents from the receptacle, and to clean thereceptacle 2 in a dishwasher or kitchen sink (not shown). In alternativeembodiments of the present invention, differently shaped organic wastereceptacles may be provided, for example, various height and sizedreceptacles may be provided, or alternatively cylindrically shaped oroval-shaped organic waste receptacles may alternatively be provided, itbeing understood that shapes may be provided that are both functionaland appeal to the eye as would be understood by persons skilled in theart. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the entirereceptacle is a single solid piece of silicone shaped as describedherein to form the receptacle, it being understood, that in alternativeembodiments of the present invention multiple pieces of silicone may beshaped as described herein to form the receptacle.

In one embodiment of the present invention, a handle 10 is provided insecure engagement with, and preferably integrated with and around themain body as illustrated in FIGS. 1, 5 and 6 which handle may bemanufactured of the same flexible silicone material (or other materialas referenced above) as is the main body of the receptacle. Organicwaste (not shown) can be placed within the receptacle 2 as indicated at6, and thereafter the receptacle 2 can be covered if desired (it beingunderstood that the receptacle 2 need not be covered at the user'soption). At the user's option, the receptacle can be covered by, forexample by Saran Wrap or other covering material which may be secured tothe lip 8 of the receptacle in a conventional manner. In an alternativeembodiment of the present invention, an airtight cover (not shown) maybe provided to seal the receptacle while the receptacle contains organicmaterial. The receptacle 2 containing organic waste material (whethercovered or not), may thereafter be positioned within a freezer, thesealed receptacle preventing odors and gases from being transferred fromwithin the receptacle to the area outside the receptacle, namely thefreezer compartment. While the organic waste material positioned withinthe receptacle is being refrigerated and/or frozen, the decompositionprocess will be substantially reduced or eliminated, further reducingthe likelihood of any transfer of odors or gases from within thereceptacle to the area outside the receptacle, namely the freezercompartment. Additionally, the refrigeration and freezing process, byreducing or eliminating decomposition, will reduce or eliminate thecreation of gases and the resulting build up of pressure from within thereceptacle in the event that the user has chosen to cover and seal thereceptacle.

As illustrated in FIG. 2, in one embodiment of the present invention,the handle 10 has an indentation 26 which may readily receive, forexample, a user's thumb 20 when the receptacle is being held by the userin the upright orientation as illustrated in FIG. 2 and additionally hasan elongated extension 19 which may be readily grasped by a user'sfingers 22 of any age (including individuals with little hand strength,disabilities such as motor dysfunctions, shaking, trouble grasping smallobjects or with relatively small hands) when the receptacle is beingheld by the user in the upright orientation as illustrated in FIG. 2.When the receptacle is oriented in the inverted position as illustratedin FIG. 3, the indentation 26 may readily receive for example, a user'sfingers 22, the user's thumbs being positioned to press on the lowersurface 28 of the receptacle with sufficient force to slightly deformthe flexible lower surface 28 of the receptacle to aid in the separationand removal of the organic material from the receptacle as needed, itbeing understood that if necessary, the receptacle can be turned nearlyinside out as needed to separate the waste material from the receptacle.The elongated extension 19 also distances a user' fingers from thefrozen organic material contained within the receptacle. In oneembodiment of the present invention, the preferred locations at which auser may press on the lower surface 28 may be visually marked by way of,for example, visual representations of raised fingerprints 31 appearingon the lower surface 28 at those locations as illustrated in FIGS. 4, 5and 6. It is also understood that when emptying the receptacle, warmambient temperature outside of the freezer/refrigerated area may beginto heat the walls and lower surface of the receptacle to facilitate themelting of the organic material at the points of contact between theorganic material and the receptacle, to facilitate the clean andsubstantially residue-free removal of the organic material from thereceptacle. Furthermore, the gently rounded corners of the interior ofthe receptacle further facilitate the clean and substantiallyresidue-free removal of the organic material from the receptacle.Furthermore, to facilitate the clean and substantially residue-freeremoval of the organic material from the receptacle a user may gentlypull on the lips 8 on opposite sides of the receptacle to separate theside walls and/or end walls of the receptacle from the frozen organicmaterial. In an alternative embodiment of the present invention verticalpull tabs or partial lips may be affixed at or near the upper edge ofthe side walls and/or end walls which vertical pull tabs or partial lipsmay be pulled outwardly by the user to separate the side walls and/orend walls of the receptacle from the frozen organic material.

While the present invention has been described with reference to its usein the context of an organic waste receptacle, it is understood thatthis receptacle can also be used as a container for frozen food, as ageneral storage container or as a baking pan where silicone or othermaterial having a sufficiently high melting point is utilized.

The present invention has been described herein with regard to preferredembodiments. However, it will be obvious to persons skilled in the artthat a number of variations and modifications can be made withoutdeparting from the scope of the invention as described herein.

1. A receptacle for waste organic materials, comprising: a. at least oneflexible gas and liquid impermeable wall; b. a flexible gas and liquidimpermeable lower surface in gas and liquid impermeable engagement withthe at least one flexible gas and liquid impermeable wall; c. whereinthe at least one flexible gas and liquid impermeable wall and theflexible gas and liquid impermeable lower surface define an interior ofthe receptacle adapted to receive and contain the waste organicmaterials.
 2. A receptacle for waste organic materials as defined inclaim 1, wherein the at least one flexible gas and liquid impermeablewall and the lower surface are silicone material.
 3. A receptacle forwaste organic materials as defined in claim 1, further comprising ahandle in secure engagement with the at least one flexible gas andliquid impermeable wall.
 4. A receptacle for waste organic materials asdefined in claim 2, further comprising a handle in secure engagementwith the at least one flexible gas and liquid impermeable wall.
 5. Areceptacle for waste organic materials as defined in claim 3, whereinthe handle is silicone material.
 6. A receptacle for waste organicmaterials as defined in claim 4, wherein the handle is siliconematerial.